1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to apparatus for removing a film coating material from a photosensitive film support. More particularly, the present invention relates to apparatus for continuously removing a photosensitive emulsion from a film support, by contacting a removing liquid with the emulsion, continuously and automatically washing and recovering the emulsion-removed film support, and continuously and automatically concentrating and recovering the silver halide which is suspended in the emulsion. 2. Description of the Prior Art
In the conventional method for removing an emulsion layer from a film support, the film support is at first cut into thin chips. These chips are then introduced into an emulsion layer-removing bath, to which an emulsion layer-removing liquid is added. The chips and the liquid are then stirred and brought into contact with each other. As a result, the emulsion layers on the film chips are removed, and the chips thus treated are then subjected to a washing treatment several times in the presence of fresh water after the removing liquid has been discharged from the bath.
However, the following drawbacks exist in this conventional method:
1. Since the method is a batch process, it is laborious and time consuming, thus uneconomical;
2. When the method is intended to handle a large amount of film, equipment of an unnecessarily large scale is required so that difficulties arise in the space distribution and arrangement of the equipment, because of the batch processing;
3. Since the film chips always have a flake shape, they tend to stick to each other, so that the adhered surfaces do not contact the layer-removing liquid, thus some portions of the emulsion layers fail to be removed;
4. In view of item (3) above, when it is intended to provide sufficient contact between the film chips and the removing liquid, it is necessary to sufficiently disperse the former in the latter and to hold the liquid at a sufficiently high concentration for the removing reaction, a large amount of the liquid is necessarily consumed rendering the method uneconomical;
5. When the film chips are removed from the removing bath after the layer-removing process, they tend to stick to the wall of the bath, which in turn makes the removal step difficult and requires unnecessary labor and thus is not economical;
6. Since the coating material remaining should be recovered from the washing water which has been used for the purpose, it is difficult to continuously feed the necessary washing water, and the washing operation has to be stopped every time so as to remove the excess amount of water or to add water used, thus not only being laborsome but also being time consuming and uneconomical;
7. Since it is difficult to accomplish the continuous feed of the washing water, the subsequent washing process inevitably is a batch type process, so that the washing step cannot be carried out under some operating conditions.